Guest Articles >> Natural Health (Last updated Aug. 27, 2024)

Toxic Plastics: Bakelite, the Silent Killer

By Barbara O'Brien

Right around the turn-of-the-century, the manufacturing of plastics exploded as the demand for the versatile and inexpensive material took off.

One of the earliest and most adaptable forms of plastic is Bakelite, made with components including phenol and formaldehyde. Infiltrating virtually all aspects of our lives for decades, Bakelite manufacturing included jewelry, toys, electrical and insulation products. From floor to ceiling tiles and desirable collectibles, Bakelite permeated households for years.

Antiques enthusiasts clamor to enrich their collections with valuable and popular Bakelite dishes and jewelry. Beautifully designed and handcrafted, these items fetch a reasonable price on the collectors' market.

Beyond the beauty of these useful products, Bakelite products permeate every area of a typical home for decades.

What is Bakelite?

As one of the first manufactured and synthetic plastics, Bakelite was highly desirable for its non-conductivity and heat-resistant properties. At the height of manufacturing, Bakelite was lauded for its versatility and as the first artificial plastic.

Furthermore, there were different levels and variants of Bakelite that had numerous industrial and commercial applications.

What is it used for?

As previously mentioned, Bakelite was used in various industries from automobile and electrical fields. Industrial Bakelite products include radios, electrical and automobile distributor caps and wiring insulation.

Later, as the versatility of Bakelite was explored, a variety of products were manufactured. Musical instrument and camera parts, and at one point, Bakelite was considered a replacement for coins by the United States Mint.

Through the early 1960s, Bakelite became a highly desirable product. Houses were decorated with Bakelite: chess pieces, necklaces, bracelets, dishes and kitchen containers.

Today, part of the reason why Bakelite items are collectibles, are because of the fine artisanship. The market value is extremely high, due to the retro feel and limited quantities of certain products. For example, Bakelite jewelry is more rare than, say, dishes or cookware.

Why is it hazardous?

The dangerous nature of Bakelite is from different sources: manufacturing, collecting and disposing.

Since Bakelite is a manufactured, synthetic plastic containing incredible amounts of formaldehyde, asbestos and other extremely toxic polymers, those who produced these desirable products, put themselves at risk. At the time, safety and health precautions were not mandatory. These hardworking men and women exposed themselves to the toxins, through exposure.

Furthermore, though it seems a benign pastime, collecting Bakelite products also do pose a heath threat. If a Bakelite product breaks, the synthetic materials become airborne, and may result in inhalation, ingestion or direct skin contact. Bakelite collectibles are beautiful but deadly.

Just like any other plastic-based product, disposing Bakelite is extremely hazardous to the environment. With older home renovations at its peak, many people are unintentionally exposed to Bakelite from replacing ceiling or floor tiles. Even more, collectors are also susceptible to exposure especially if a dish or a bracelet is broken.

Besides the obvious danger to the environment to improper disposal of these products, there is a considerable and lingering health risk. Not only did these products contain formaldehyde, Bakelite contained asbestos, a known and hazardous toxin. Exposure to Bakelite dust may cause lung infections, mesothelioma and other respiratory complications. Though medical care for these conditions, including mesothelioma treatments, are improving through breakthroughs, there is still an on-going risk; not only for those who manufactured those products but also for those who own them.

Disposing these materials safely is critical. Many facilities carefully dispose of Bakelite products in a manner that is not hazardous to human or environmental health. To find a plastic recycling center near you, check out Earth911. This is how we can all do our part in cleaning up these harmful plastics and in turn, making our environment a better place. Find ways to substitute harmful plastics out of your daily routine. But if you must use them, dispose of them safely and cleanly

About the Author

Written by Barbara O'Brien.

Disclaimer:

The above guest post is published based on the premise that it will be helpful and informative. The opinions made within it are those of the author and not of sunnyray.org. The links you may find within this post do not necessarily imply our recommendation or endorsement of the views expressed within them.

Comments:

Julie Rinard says:
04-06-2012

Some bakelite buttons discolored the fabric behind them and the fabric of another jacket hanging next to them in my closet and over an unknown period of time, "burned" a hole through the fabric! Have you ever heard of such a thing? I had secured the thread knots behind the buttons with Fray Check. Do you think there was a chemical reaction in my closet?

sunny says:
04-06-2012

Hi Julie,
thanks for your comment. The above was a guest article from Barbara O'Brien, so I hope she will care to comment on your question. I am not an expert in this matter, so please do not take my opinion for granted, but the damage could perhaps be related to the fact that bakelite is a combination of two substances, carbolic acid and formaldehyde? If the acid was somehow released, there would certainly be some sort of chemical reaction.

eti says:
12-26-2012

So how dangerous exactly bakelite jewelry is?

sara says:
12-31-2012

Is bakelite as bad as asbestos?

sunny says:
12-31-2012

I would stay away from bakelite, including jewelry and other products.

Paul Littrell, Jr. says:
06-03-2014

Maybe you can tell me--- where did Union Carbide Corporation manufacture Bakelite in the 1960's? Where were their Bakelite plants located? Thanks!

teresa says:
07-11-2014

I bought two very old cans of antique buttons and unknowingly cleaned them by boiling them in hot soapy water. I did this for days because they were so filthy. I handled them over and over and while I did notice a certain odor... I did not know they contained formaldehyde. I became very ill and my skin became extremely painful and sensitive. It has been over a year and symptoms have only become worse. My life changed forever because of a fifty cent bargain at a yard sale. PLEASE be aware to never ever make the same mistake I did.

sunny says:
07-11-2014

Thanks, teresa, for sharing with us your words of caution. At the same time, I am sorry to hear about your trouble. I hope you will find some way to relieve your symptoms. Many blessing.

Bryan says:
07-26-2014

I would have to disagree with bakelite being dangerous by just having it around at all. I have several rotary phones and coffee pots with bakelite handles and have never experienced any ill effects through normal use (I.e. handling them when I'm using them, etc.). Certainly boiling bakelite is going to cause some problems, but that can be said of just about any chemical that you expose to extreme heat (remember when we found out that BPA leaches much more readily if you, say, leave a water bottle in your car?).

Besides that, no one here has addressed simply using common sense when handling synthetics, rather than overreacting and avoiding something entirely just because it has formaldehyde or possibly asbestos. For one thing, asbestos is only dangerous when it is friable (meaning that you can easily crush it into dust with your hands) so if it is locked to a matrix, like in a synthetic plastic, it cannot become airborne.

Also, as long as you aren't wearing bakelite on your skin all day everyday, I have to imagine that your risk is very low. My grandfather grew up when Bakelite was in almost everything and he lived to nearly 88 without what could be described as "plastic-handling related illnesses". Again, common sense goes a long way. Think about all the chemicals that we expose ourselves to in toothpaste and mouthwash and lotions and deodorants, etc, that we apply to our skin or ingest every single day, and yet here we are fussing over a plastic that is relatively harmless simply having some around. As long as you aren't trying to eat it or pulverize it into dust (or boil it...which I'm still baffled by) then you should be fine.

One final thought, where did the article writer get their information? They don't seem to be credentialed as a plastic manufacturing expert and they didn't cite any source material. Their conclusions could all be conjecture based on Wiki reading for all we know. I'm not claiming to be an expert either, but I have personal and family experience and a three-hour asbestos training course that I have to take every year to back up what I've written here. Take it or leave it if you like.

sunny says:
07-26-2014

Thanks, Bryan. What your said about bakelite makes a lot of sense. Your clarifications and corrections are very much appreciated.

Bryan says:
07-26-2014

Also, just a follow up...bakelite is created through an elimination process resulting in a very low, if any, toxicity. Additionally, it seems that asbestos based bakelite was reserved mostly for commercial or industrial applications and its use is not banned:

http://www.asbestos.com/products/general/plastics.php

Please not the "at a glance section" showing that it is not friable. I'll grant you that the article mentions that repeated friction use can cause it to degrade and release dust, but a plastic handle on your phone (which will likely be a wood fiber or canvas based bakelite anyway) is not going to degrade like that. And with the low toxicity level, as long as you aren't doing anything to alter the chemical structure with reactive chemicals or extreme heat, your risk is going to be extremely low.

Cynthia says:
09-16-2014

Bryan, I would have to disagree. The most commonly worn bakelite are plastic bangles. On wearing the jewelry, the heat of the body causes the bakelite to emit an odor, and even have a stain rub off on the skin. The way you test for an item of bakelite includes rubbing the item until it warms to the touch, so a strong formaldehyde odor is detected. These bracelets are highly popular by vintage collectors, but the smell alone is troublesome. Also wearing this jewelry means exposing the items to environmental changes, and possibly even breaking the items. While I understand you disagree with the safety of having the item in your home, I would just like to state how toxic this plastic smells when worn.

Alexander says:
03-21-2015

Yesterday I was searching for a gold foil/screen tea infuser, which much like the coffee filters of the same type are non-reactive with the acids. Of course the screen has to be supported by something and in this case, a type of plastic. Regular infusers are often supported and made of stainless steel screen, foil or prefer metal. When I voiced concern about the lifespan of the plastic a male owner of the shop piped up, it's not plastic, it's Bakelite. This brought up vivid memories of lid handles and old heavy telephones of my youth. So it began...

My search of Bakelite led me to this discussion after first reading the wiki article on Bakelite. Although alluded to by Bryan, I dare-say much of the original article was all but plagarized from from the wiki article then imbued with personal opinion and confusion over Bakelite with and without asbestos reinforcement seasoned with a thread of chemistry kills, hide you daughters and run for the hills. (sorry about the mixed metaphors and hyperbole)

I think the usefulness of Bakelite is long past and much surpassed by modern plastics. Occasionally a manufacturer trots out the name and associates it with durability due to its early development (i.e. Our pots use genuine Bakelite handles to last the generations). Quite the opposite, Bakelite, is inferior to most modern high temperature polymers. It is brittle, lacks truly high temperature resistance, and degrades with repeated exposure to boiling water and/or steam. So never put your Bakelite handled lids in the oven.

That said, collecting Bakelite consumer products can be a rewarding pastime but there is a difference between collecting and wearing. If someone wishes to create their own little private Bakelite museum, why not, but this product has been surpassed in every practical way so it is probably not a good idea to use these items in every day life as originally intended. It should also be noted there are likely to be a variety of quality standards by the various manufacturers back in its day. The possibility that some products leach out or off gas toxic chemicals, especially if subjected to high heat is not to be discounted. Nor that some might be chemically sensitive to Bakelite or its decomposition byproducts. If you count yourself as part of this group, avoid Bakelite, but at the same time give you fellow travellers the dignity to make their own decisions based on facts not dogmatic statements, anecdotes or biased assumptions.

As with most things in life common sense avoids many problems.

By the way, the gold screen tea infuser support is made from a high temperature food grade polymer, not Bakelite. Now I have to go ask the owner of the tea shop to not misinform customers about the original plastic Bakelite.

sunny says:
03-21-2015

Thanks, Alexander, for your 2 cents on the matter. After reading your comment, another question comes to mind, namely, how safe the modern plastic is. Probably not as dangerous as Bakelite, but I have seen some pretty discouraging reviews.

valentino says:
10-23-2015

I've been collecting and wearing bakelite for 30 years and I've never had my bakelite "heat up and emit the tell-tale smell" while wearing it. Plus, my rockabilly dancer friends - who do sweat a lot - never smelled it coming from them or their jewelry either.

Ray says:
04-02-2016

Hello, Interesting Comments. For the sake of clarifying something, most radio cabinets had Wood Pulp in them NOT asbestos. At the time these plastics were being produced, Asbestos was an expensive product and was not used by most Radio manufacturer. I know this from the Guys who are still alive and worked in the factories in Australia making radio cabinets.These guys are now in their 80's and 90's so if there was any of the nasties they would not still be around. Later on other cheaper and more stable plastics replaced bakelite. Another reason that in some cases you get discolouration of items next to this product is that Dye's were added to the wood and chemical mix to give them that Brown and other colours . Over time these dyes can evaporate and react with plastic or synthetic cloth or materials.

Even having UV exposure from the cloth with the vapour can cause a photo chemical reaction. In essence maybe somewhere some manufactures used other additives, but lookup what chemicals were used, They in their base states are very nasty but once stabilised into this plastic they are stable.

I think you should be more concerned with the plastic take away container your food comes in rather than Radio Cabinets guys.

sunnyray says:
04-05-2016

Thanks for taking the time to comment Ray. Of course, you are spot on about the adverse effects of plastic food containers.

Deyana says:
04-20-2016

Very interesting to read - thank you all for the input. I am very worried that the living room of the apartment my daughter in law lives in smells sometimes very strong as Bakelite. I am over 50 and remember well that smell. The apartment is in an old building in Hoboken, NJ, USA. How harmful is that, how to track where the smell comes from? I will be very thankful for advices and opinions.

GetAbrainFolks says:
06-14-2016

I'm so happy some of the above pointed out the utter pointlessness of this article. You can go outside you house, anywhere on earth, and if you expose yourself to enough DIRT, you will be exposed to untold zillions of bacteria, viruses, and yes, RADIOACTIVE elements too many to list! Eat enough and surely you will react badly and/or die. This article is a perfect example of hypersinstitive (mentally not chemically) too many humans have become. I simply can't stand it, and also have to take issue with the entire premise. If you boil DIRT, as one idiot above did with bakelite, you'd almost certainly get the same reaction, and probably a dose of poison-ivy to boot. Grow up children! Stop feeding the lawyers!

Notworththerisk! says:
06-17-2016

If you had a loved one with mesothelioma you would realise how dangerous asbestos is. Only takes one fibre to be inhaled or ingested. There is no cure! So if you feel I'm hypersensitive for agreeing with this article that's a title I accept.

Nathan says:
07-03-2016

Rule one. Don't buy it. Two. Get rid of it. Your life is worth more! Death via cancer from asbestos is horrible,painful. Go to YouTube to find the victims, including a famous throat Doctor!

lydia says:
07-23-2016

Misuse of the word 'Toxin'!

William says:
09-21-2016

I've been in the electronic business over 50 years and have worked with Bakelite for decades with no ill results. You have to realize there are many fibers that could be used to make the product. Industrial equipment that required high temp, protection used asbestos. Its highly unlikely you'd ever come in contact with that unless you worked in an industry that used it. Anything mentioned here by posters wouldn't need to be high temp.

Also heating or boiling Bakelite isn't going to change it back into formaldehyde. If you believe it does you simply don't understand anything about chemistry. Now if you ground it op into a fine powder and breathed it in I'm sure it wouldn't be very good for you health, but in a solid form, its actually one of the safer plastics. I'd be more worried about your soft plastic water and coke bottles which give off Dioxin BPA and Bisphenol associated with a whole host of health issues including birth defects, cancer. A variety of things

Most Bakelite today is antique and any liquid chemicals that could emit vapors after manufacturing would have evaporated many decades ago.

If you google the MSDS Safety sheets required by the government for all chemical products it clearly states there is no known health dangers from Bakelite and they've had the past 100 years to confirm this.

From the MSDS sheets "The plastic resin is not believed or known to be hazardous. When fully ???????cured??????? or reacted, the plastic resin is insoluble, infusible and binds the well-dispersed, embedded filling materials"

Again, if its a special product used for industrial applications it may have had asbestos added to the mix, but that's an expensive product you wouldn't find in the normal home environment and since asbestos is banned in most markets its unlikely it will ever be a threat.

Alexis says:
12-01-2016

I think that the author should have added into the article what positive impacts it has instead of only listing the negatives.

Truth says:
12-26-2016

Teresa- You should see a doctor. Don't self-diagnose...especially when you're so susceptible to confirmation bias. It could be something serious, and you're wasting your time throwing away plastic instead of using that time to seek life-saving treatment.

Whiffing formaldehyde fumes doesn't cause instant cancer. The risk with formaldehyde comes from long-term exposure in enclosed environments with poor air circulation. The people most at risk (just like with asbestos) were those who manufactured it.

Formaldehyde is commonly kept as a liquid dissolved in water, and is a precursor to PF resins such as Bakelite. Bakelite is NOT a form of frozen formaldehyde. The process of creating Bakelite resin is irreversible: it can't be reverted to its original components! The resin is known for behind highly water resistant, and has a flash-point much, MUCH higher than the temperature of boiling water, not to mention the human body. No study that I could find revealed that Bakelite outgasses formaldehyde. Probably because it doesn't contain any!

However I do know certain types of PF resins that outgas other compounds that aren't formaldehyde. (As measured in a vacuum test chamber, so that vapor pressure doesn't have to overcome atmospheric pressure--not anthropomorphized jewelry that aggressively leaps into the nostrils of its wearer and blasts a jet of mystery toxins.) I won't mention what those compounds are. Obviously people hand-waving about the dangers of Bakelite should know this. Huh. Funny how that information doesn't appear on this page.

Anyway, long story short: if you're having mysetrious health problems, see at least two board-certified doctors and a perhaps a specialist. We should all learn from the lesson of Steve Jobs the dangers of believing witch doctors.

Phil says:
03-12-2017

I bought a lot of pots and pans from Ikea, all made in China with Bakelite handles.The problem starts when the handles get hot eg from boiling the pot dry or the flame flickering over to the handles. The smell is aggressive and penetrates and remains in the house for at least two hours even with all the windows and doors open. Are sure that the fumes are not toxic?
Thanks Phil
PS I think to be sure I will just get rid of them as something does not match.

Dave L Phipps says:
03-20-2017

My Dad worked for Synthane Corporation and retired from there years ago as did his brother. They made all kinds of bakelite out of different materials. Paper asbestos etc. My Dad worked in the saw dept and the press room. He sawed bakelite into various sizes and shaped with a band saw for years and lived to be 94 years old and did not pass from any bakelite exposure rather dimentia. His brother who just had his 90th Birthday who retired from Synthane also is in better shape then most people his age and is very active with gardening etc on his little farm in the south now. He's gets his yearly health check ups and the only thing wrong with him is he needed hearing aids. Quite a few of their friends who worked with them at Synthane are still alive. So I don't know where the dangerous part is about bakelite unless you grind it up and eat it.

David Weisenthal says:
05-02-2017

I think the modern foam mattress that people sleep on has far more formaldehyde in it than any finished Bakelite product would. That's true of many foam product. Also, grinding anything into fine powder is terrible for your lungs. Wood dust, Diatomaceous earth, cement dust, and a lot of sand is full of super fine silica dust. This article doesn't offer any real evidence for the dangers of Bakelite-seems silly to me.

Brian Bechtel says:
05-26-2017

Interesting article. I too was researching Bakelite and ended finding my way here.

I hadn't realized that it was used in so many things.

An aspect that some may not know is that in the gun world, Russians made AK magazines out of Bakelite. And people in the AK world of today but them when they can.

An enthusiast who also makes jewelry started making beautiful rings out of Bakelite from old magazines. Not sure how he makes them or if he seals them with some other resin. Considering buying one is what led to my search.

My original thinking was in a solid form it shouldn't pose a threat.

hobby16 says:
07-07-2017

Chiming in as a chemical engineer, there are persistent rumors that bakelite was forbidden because of its supposed toxicity, it's false. Bakelite has been mostly ruled out because of recycling regulations. It is a tridimensionnal polymer, rendering it impossible to recycle by remelting or by energy generating burning, contrary to other long-chain plastics like PE, PS, PVC... Since manufacturers are compelled by law to include some (big) percentage of recyclable materials, it renders the use of bakelite mostly impossible.

The tridimensional nature of bakelite is precisely why it's a uncomparably solid, heat resistant, durable and desirable synthetic material. Bakelite ages very well contrary to modern plastics, that's why items with bakelite are so valued by buyers and collectors.

It is made from oil derivatives and is no more costly to produce than any other synthetic polymers, it only cost more for end users because of small volumes. As to odor, there may be smelly bakelite like there may be smelly any other plastics, it has nothing to do with the nature of the material and everything to do with the sloppy fabrication process and the lack of quality control. Smelly bakelite is more the exception than the rule but anyway, it has have never been a public health concern (want something which smells more, try wood!). The fear mongering around bakelite is unfair and unjustified. If anything, life expectancy has greatly increased during the golden age of bakelite (and show no sign of slowing down decades after), so any accusation against bakelite is contradicted by massive evidence.

Wayne says:
10-18-2017

Bakelite aside, the dangers of prolonged exposure to plastics and other such synthetic materials and chemicals have been proven over and over. In the present world, we are all surrounded by the stuff - eating and breathing it. People are inexplicably dropping all around us like flies due to cancer and we are still wondering why. Wake up people!!

Dave says:
10-26-2017

As a long time collector of Bakelite telephones I have thoroughly researched the British GPO archives from the 1920's all the way through to the 1960's and asbestos was never used as a filler for old Bakelite telephones in the UK. In Britain they used "wood filler" as the "filler" for Bakelite, only because after extensive testing they believed "wood filler" produced far more resilient Bakelite telephone cases. So thankfully the risks of owning or working with old Bakelite phones is non existent.

Emily says:
01-11-2018

I am doing a chemistry project on bakelite and one of my focuses are better alternatives of bakelite. The exact question is "do safer, greener, more cost effective alternatives exist?" I have found some like tufnol and Corian. Even though they may be similar to bakelite, i don't believe they are safer nor greener or more cost effective which is what I am searching for. Any help would be appreciated!

Thanks

cath drysdale says:
03-06-2018

My hotpoint tumble dryer has been giving off a fishy smell when in use. My grandson says it's bakelite in the machine overheating and I should get rid of it. Is this possible.

Luca Torsello says:
05-02-2018

Hi!
I own several flutes (recorders) made by bakelite.
They are musical instruments entirely without cracks, breakages or other similar defects.
Can I use them safely or is it more prudent to spray them with a clear spray paint on their outer surface?
Many thanks
Luca


Jan says:
06-05-2018

My home unit gets an electrical odour in the lounge room quite often in the evenings. It is very unpleasant. I opened the door of the electricity metre boxes one cold weekend day when most people were probably at home using electricity for heaters and the smell was the same but magnified by ten times. I had it checked and it turns out all is in good condition and the electrical boards are Bakerlite. So maybe the heat inside the electricity metre boxes causes the fumes. Given that toxic chemicals are used to make Bakerlite then a person who doesn't have a chemistry degree can use their common sense and try and keep these fumes out of their homes by using under the door draught stoppers, air purifiers etc. Hopefully the fumes are not toxic but they are unwanted.

D.Philpott says:
07-05-2018

The article that has given rise to all these questions is poorly researched and scare mongering at it's worst, i'm afraid. Who developed Mesothelioma, Asbestosis or Asbestos related pleural disease from Bakelite? Could we have names? It would perhaps be wise to wear gloves if washing bakelite items with sensitive hands, but describing bakelite as beautiful but deadly is bizarre.

Jocelyne says:
09-30-2018

Wonder if bakelite was produce in Africa. My dad worked in Africa for many years and over the time he would bring back , of course little souvenir, jewelry etc. This bring me questions about a certain necklace made with big beads of yellow/orange color plastic and dried seeds. Always love the smell of the necklace but i never wore it. Hard to say if it is the seeds or the plastic that give it smell.

Sheila says:
10-21-2018

I was brought up in an era of Bakelite light switches, power points and light fittings. One light switch was accidentally broken when furniture was moved. It being wartime it couldn't be replaced for years. We all learned to live with the occasional zap when we switched the light on or off. Other things made from Bakelite were knobs on pan lids and handles as well as handles on coffee pots. Our home was full of such items and apart from my half sister, we all lived to be elderly. Mum at 79, Dad 85. one brother 82. My older brother is 86 and I am 83.

Nevada City says:
12-21-2018

I have my Mom's Mah Jong set, made totally from Bakelite in the late 30s, early 40s. The Mah Jong tiles and tile racks are gorgeous, valuable, and I enjoy playing Mah Jong with the set once a week. And no, my hands don't break out in blisters or cancer, and I have no thought of either tossing the set or stopping using it.

Reindert Groot says:
01-01-2019

I do not believe these stories. We are collecting for more than 25 years bakelite objects. No complaints and never heard about health issues. Please visit amsterdambakelitecollection.com

Wishing a healthy 2019,

Reindert Groot

Bill says:
05-09-2019

Henry Ford made his own deadly version of Bakelite by mixing phenol, formaldehyde and defatted soybean meal which reacted to create a thermoplastic resin that could be molded under pressure to create durable nonstructural plastic parts, such as radio knobs, light switch pulls, distributor caps, body trim, etc. Ford's labs also invented the first synthetic enamels using soy bean oil that was extracted from the soybean meal by the using gasoline solvents.

Mary says:
05-16-2019

I belong to an early music recorder group in Brisbane, Australia. Yesterday I was thrilled to be given a Dolmetsch 'dolonite' tenor recorder. I played it for about half an hour this morning. The first thing I noticed was how heavy it is, and my shoulders ached at the end of my practice. I also noticed that I had a slight headache. I never get headaches. I also felt inexplicable weary and was napping by 10 o'clock in the morning! Unconnected with the above, this evening I decided to research my recorder's age and origin, and have discovered that dolonite is another name for Bakelite with all its toxic elements. I had the substance in my mouth for half an hour, which now explains my not feeling so good afterwards. I regret that I won't be playing it again, and I'd like to warn others of this possible dangers.

Rich says:
06-28-2019

I purchased a tenor saxophone mouthpiece from a man on eBay which turned out to be a combination of bakelite and metal. Part of the bakelite is in my mouth when I play it. This item was manufactured in 1923 and I wanted to own an old mouthpiece. I wonder if there is still a danger in using the item so many years later?

Sherry says:
07-11-2019

The most annoying thing about this thread is the back and forth with oh, it didnt hurt me or my relatives, etc etc. I think this is about the toxicity of Bakelite and that is why I came. I saw a piece of jewelry on e-bay I liked made of celluloid and another of Bakelite and decided to look it up and now feel it is not for me. There are many choices in jewelry and plastic items that are nontoxic. Bakelite was made of toxic substances as many things are and I try to avoid them due to my known sensitivities. I grew up in a rural farming region heavily laden with herbicides and pesticides. I have suffered greatly from these toxins interference in my system causing me to have autoimmune system diseases but I have cousins that dont. Bakelite can bother the respiratory and other systems in some people and not others, or maybe it does and they just do not know it yet. However, we dont need people saying oh well,you cant have a reaction to Bakelite, it cant be from the the Bakelite because of etc., etc. Arguing over it this way is not helpful. Who knows why something is highly toxic to some people giving them horrible reactions and not at all to others. Ever see the smoking commercials with people with half their face missing, etc. and in the same breath someone somewhere will say I been smoking since I was 12 and now I am 80 and it never hurt me or my dad or whoever. And this statement from some smokers, we all gonna die of something so let me have my cigarettes. I know Bakelite is not the same as smoking. But when I hear I am going to use this Bakelite no matter the toxicity I think of smoking.

Sandra says:
11-18-2019

So I find myself on this page because like many who have commented on this thread I'm looking at how safe Bakelite is. This thread hasn't helped lol. I'm looking for a greener saucepan set, so will go for a ceramic coating. This was on aluminiun which has been linked to cancer and alzheimers, but as long has it's completely covered then you are ok. The handles are either bakelite or phenolic which is basically the same. I care for my mum who has cancer and COPD along with other health issues. It's not until you stop and look at healthier ways to live, eg, what you cook with, drink from, sleep on etc that you really see just how toxic this whole planet has become. You then begin to see why so many people have health issues. As I type this I'm aware of the radiation that is coming from my computer screen. I think everything needs to become more greener because as we all know we have been slowly killing our planet for years along with damaging our own health in ways we shouldn't have to. I'm no scientist so I don't have the answers. I'm sure I've lived with bakelite saucepan handles all my life because they have all had plastic handles. Did they contribute to my mum becoming ill? Was it additives in food? Chemtrails? Genetics? Or a mixture of it all?

Sam says:
12-20-2019

The author of this article has the typical knee jerk reaction so many people have today about topics like this.

Let's use the asbestos claim as an example. Sure, SOME products had asbestos in them as a hardener. Yet, many products used wood flour (ultra fine sawdust) as the hardener if they weren't going to be exposed to heat.

Wood flour was a much cheaper alternative to asbestos.

I'll acknowledge that the average person couldn't tell the difference, but want to point out the over reaction.

Another area of over reaction is if an object breaks. The amount of asbestos released by such a break is so low as to be at the minuscule parts per billion or trillion, which is NOT a health hazard. if you repair it with epoxy, you seal any fibers anyway.

The one thing I would be hesitant about is using something made out of it like a teapot. That's better left to being a display piece.

In truth, as another reply mentioned, there are many more modern things to be careful about than bakelite. Resin products no better than bakelite from a health viewpoint are used everywhere these days. They are just cheaper to make.

Now the other thing the author is NOT aware of. Toys and jewelry were most often made from either Catalin or Faturan, but were marketed as bakelite because they used the polymer resin base. They however, did NOT contain asbestos.

Like I said earlier, this is a knee jerk, poorly researched article. It should be taken with a grain of salt.

John says:
08-07-2020

Another scare mongering article, only partially based in reality, written by someone who seemingly has no scientific background or basis or evidence to prove the outlandish claims made in the article.

Richard says:
09-12-2020

This article is dangerously wrong, and was written by someone with no knowledge of chemistry. As others have noted, Bakelite contains no fiberglass or asbestos (wood filler or walnut shell were commonly used). Also, any formaldehyde or other hazardous substances are converted into inert materials during the process, leaving no residue since any remnants of the formaldehyde will have evaporated off during the curing process.

I love the phrase "incredible amounts of formaldehyde, asbestos and other extremely toxic polymers" since none of those ingredients are polymers...the end result of the process is a polymer, which is not toxic at all.

Many of the people commenting about "reactions" are either fabulists who love to imagine harm from various substances, or are simply wrong. There's more active formaldehyde in an apple than in a piece of 70+ year old plastic. Learn some basic science before publishing such material; this is why the Internet is such a sewer of misinformation.

Ulysses says:
10-04-2020

Occupational exposure to airborne asbestos from phenolic molding material (Bakelite) during sanding, drilling, and related activities.
Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
Mowat, Fionna; Bono, Michael; Lee, R J; Tamburello, Susan; Paustenbach, Dennis
Exponent, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA


In this study, a historical phenolic (Bakelite) molding material, BMMA-5353, was tested to determine the airborne concentrations of asbestos fibers released during four different activities (sawing, sanding, drilling, and cleanup of dust generated from these activities). Each activity was performed for 30 min, often in triplicate. The primary objective for testing BMMA-5353 was to quantitatively determine the airborne concentration of asbestos fibers, if any, in the breathing zone of workers. Uses of this product typically did not include sawing or sanding, but it may have been drilled occasionally. For this reason, only small quantities were sawed, sanded, and drilled in this simulation study. Personal (n = 40), area (n = 80), and background/clearance (n = 88) air samples were collected during each activity and analyzed for total fiber concentrations using phase contrast microscopy (PCM) and, for asbestos fiber counts, transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The raw PCM-total fiber concentrations were adjusted based on TEM analyses that reported the fraction of asbestos fibers, to derive a PCM-asbestos concentration that would enable calculation of an 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA). The estimated 8-hour TWAs ranged from 0.006 to 0.08 fibers per cubic centimeter using a variety of worker exposure scenarios. Therefore, assuming an exposure scenario in which a worker uses power tools to cut and sand products molded from BMMA-5353 and similar products in the manner evaluated in this study, airborne asbestos concentrations should not exceed current or historical occupational exposure limits.

Tom Howard says:
11-02-2020

Very interesting, and yet alarming to me personally! Why you ask? Well, I was a concrete contractor for many years in Fla. and part od my work included "finishing" concrete, which involves rubbing it as it cures. We usually use Magnesium trowels (which we call "Mag's"), but often used the older "Bakelite trowels" also. Right, you guessed it (amazing I can read your mind's), as the use of such would offer the remains of the bakelite material, as it is being rubbed away with use, would have to go somewhere, and I am afraid it went up into my lungs as I was breathing hard as I rubbed the concrete in order to finish it smooth. But, thankfully, the modern use of Magnesium took over the concrete tool industry and left the old Bakelite material to obscure history. I have no seemly adverse effect from it today, thank God!

Justin says:
11-24-2020

Hello,
Thanks for this wealth of information! there is very little to be found on the internet... kind of scary like a cover up. how dangerous do you think using a old bakelite militarily coffee cup thats 20-40 years old?

DiamondDave says:
12-15-2020

Justin - there is no cover up - Bakelite is an industrial product that has been well studied and reported on, but it’s long since been replaced by plastics.

If you purchased an antique tool and the instructions said ‘lubricate with whale blubber’ and tried to research ‘whale blubber lubricant’ you wouldn’t find much information. No cover up, no conspiracy - it just isn’t used in modern times.

As for your coffee cup - unless it has a chip or a crack, it has stabilized and is useable. If YOU are concerned, then limit it to occasional use. If you are running in circles and screaming “what do I do! There is a government conspiracy to hide the TRUTH about Bakelite, I’m worried for my health and that of my offspring and neighbors and THE entire world!!!” Then in that case you should either leave it on a shelf or dispose of it and switch to ceramic.

Shameimaru says:
11-24-2021

Upon actually going through old documents inlcuding those from Bakelite Co. as well as 'Union Carbide Corporation' from the 1980s, a MAJORITY of Bakelite plastic products DID NOT have asbestos used as Wood Flour was typically used in Lieu of Asbestos. I've personally tested for asbestos in Bakelite products like the Kodak Brownie Hawkeye and there was NO ASBESTOS DETECTED in the Flash holder and Camera. The typical places where Asbestos would be found in Bakelite would certainly be in products where heat was involved like Bakelite Cooking Pan Handles and ect. But for Jewelry (Which also was typically made of Catlin) or Cameras, odds are, Asbestos was not used in the Plastic

Josette says:
12-29-2021

How do I identify Bakelite. I have various jewellery items purportedly Bakelite but how can I test them. The ring has caused a yellow stain around my finger when wet but I have not sensed a smell.

Pat says:
01-22-2022

Y'all can stay in California with the rest of those whimpy, paranoid queers. Nobody is forcing you to eat the stuff.
Get a life!

DebJewelryDiva says:
02-01-2022

Old plastics that deteriorate and destroy adjacent items are celluloid, not Bakelite. Any item with celluloid "sickness" rot should be responsibly disposed of to avoid spreading the destructive rotting "sickness". Boiling water is not good for anything but cooking. Hot water and mild soap should be enough to clean anything worth having. If water is too hot for hands, it's too hot to clean collectibles. Water will completely soften and can destroy cellulose acetate items.

Try small amount of baking soda paste to test for Bakelite. Mustard yellow oxidation stain and/or phenolic scent confirm.

JamesLong says:
03-07-2022

Bakelite is no a plastic. Plastics are oil based textiles. Bakelite is a textile.. not a plastic.

Jim C. says:
09-15-2022

You'd have to turn a bakelite object into powder and INHALE it or BURN it to experience any health hazard from bakelite. The world is filled with hazards. Some of the plants we put around our homes will produce toxic fumes when they burn. Most of the carpets, counter tops, electrical boxes, clothing, and food boxes will be just as toxic. Needless worrying. Life will never be hazard free.

Sally says:
03-30-2023

Okay, I have a huge Bakelite jewelry collection. I notice you talk about breaks and not scratches. Is it the same. Also, Bakelite is still sold today in bars and rods for carving. Is this dangerous? I think the companies spit there providing this on eBay and Etsy should be stopped from selling these items to be carved. Most of the high end Bakelite from the 30s is also deep carved. So is a carve different from a break? They aren’t sealed. And how long long do these “toxic leaks” last?

William Hunter says:
08-27-2024

Hi I have a Bakelite Austin seven puzzle given away by Austin in the 1950s every time I open the Bakelite box there is a residue liquid is this liquid dangerous or poisonous

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